MS port suing SIC contractor

GULFPORT, Miss. - The Port of Gulfport is suing Southern Industrial Contractors of Rayville, La., for $5.8 million, plus punitive damages, over a $50 million construction contract that is about 18 month behind schedule. The port claims the contractor breached its contract to build terminals and transit warehouses for tenants on West Pier, which was under renovation and expansion through $570 million from the federal government after Hurricane Katrina. The project was to be finished in March 2016. The port terminated SIC’s contract a year ago. SIC’s bonding company, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America, is responsible for seeing the job was completed. SIC has a lawsuit pending again the Mississippi Development Authority, which oversees the port, and others over the contract. SIC is seeking $50 million in damages and contends MDA, and port engineering and construction firms, were negligent in the administration and oversight of the contract. (Source: Sun Herald 09/18/17)